Texas programs

• We’re improving the health of babies in Texas.
• Our programs support moms-to-be and health care professionals.
• We offer comfort to families with a newborn in intensive care.

March of Dimes offers a variety of programs throughout the state to help local communities have stronger, healthier babies. Learn more about some of our community programs below.

Antepartum Family Support Program

The Antepartum Family Support Program is available to provide socialization and education about premature birth and relief from the boredom and stress of extended bed rest while in a hospital.  Trained volunteers visit women hospitalized on the Antepartum Units of participating hospitals to provide support and information. 

Becoming a Mom/Comenzando bien® 

Becoming a Mom/Comenzando bien® is a prenatal education program created for pregnant women.  The information provided is designed to improve participants’ chances of having a healthy pregnancy and a healthy baby. Classes serve as a source of social support for the women and allow them the opportunity to connect with other mothers in a similar situation. The program has been implemented in a variety of settings, including community-based organizations, churches and worksites, and it is taught by trained facilitators. Becoming a Mom/Comenzando bien® takes a holistic approach to caring for the family, using education that helps women enhance their well-being.

CenteringPregnancy®

Imagine prenatal care with no waiting; a community of friends; relaxed time with your provider; an opportunity to talk about pregnancy, birth, parenting, and even set personal goals; refreshments and fun. Expectant women enrolled in CenteringPregnancy® receive their prenatal care in a group setting. They don’t wait in a waiting room; they come directly to group. They weigh themselves, take their own blood pressure, chart their results, listen to their baby’s heartbeat, talk with their provider for a few minutes, enjoy some refreshments, visit with the other mothers-to-be, then circle up with the provider and eight to twelve women due near the same time  for over an hour of discussion on the topic of the day. There is sharing, laughter, wisdom, advice—empowerment as women learn from each other and support one another. 

Honey Child Prenatal Education Program

The Honey Child Prenatal Education Program has been designed to provide African-American women with the culturally-appropriate information and support needed to have the healthiest possible pregnancy and birth outcome. The intervention targets African-American women of childbearing age with a specific focus on women ages 17-44.

NICU Family Support

When a baby is born too soon or very sick and starts life in the newborn intensive care unit (NICU), the March of Dimes is there to support the family. Some babies spend just a couple of days, others many long months. Having a baby in a NICU can be frightening, confusing and overwhelming. NICU Family Support offers information and comfort. We enhance family-centered care practices in partner hospitals to address the needs of families and provide professional education to NICU staff.

Stork’s Nest

Stork’s Nest is a community-based, prenatal health promotion program for pregnant women.  The program is designed to promote prenatal care participation and healthy behaviors during pregnancy through two components—incentives and education. 

Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait

Healthy Babies are Worth the Wait is a multi-dimensional, community-based approach to preventing preventable preterm births. The goal of HBWW is to change the community’s knowledge, attitudes and behavior regarding preterm birth, and its risk factors and strategies to prevent it. In order to affect the entire community, HBWW utilizes a multi-level model, bundling interventions and education strategies for patients, perinatal providers and the general public.

Caring Cradles Community Baby Showers

The Community Baby Shower is a March of Dimes project to increase awareness of maternal-child health issues and accept the donation of gently used and new baby items.  The donated items are given as incentives through community agencies to encourage women to seek appropriate prenatal care for themselves as well as well-child follow up care for their babies.  If you are interested in joining a baby shower, please contact us.

Healthy Babies Healthy Business

The emotional costs of premature birth to families is high—and so are the financial costs to businesses.

Perinatal Excellence Awards

The March of Dimes is committed to improving the health of mothers and babies and recognizes the contributions that physicians in obstetrics, family practice, maternal-fetal medicine, and neonatology make to achieve this goal. The purpose of this award is to recognize and encourage excellence within the areas of perinatal clinical practice, education, research, community and program development.

Helen Pearson Scholarship Application

The Helen Pearson Scholarship is an award presented annually to two outstanding individuals involved in, or wishing to pursue study in the field of perinatal health care.

Visiting Professorship in Nursing Conference

Each spring, the March of Dimes Houston Division, presents the Visiting Professorship in Nursing Conference. The March of Dimes Professional Education Committee, comprised of local nursing practitioners, experts and instructors, strives to provide the perinatal community with an educational offering that is timely and expands knowledge. Each year, this dedicated group of volunteers identifies and invites a diverse group of experts to share their experiences, best practices and create conversation. The conference also features panels to provide varying perspectives and dimension to the educational forum.

Disaster Preparedness

Natural disasters can make life more complicated for pregnant women and infants living in high risk areas. While we can’t change the weather, we can change what we do to deal with whatever Mother Nature delivers.

Prematurity Awareness Month

The March of Dimes has designated November as Prematurity Awareness Month to let us know that premature birth is a crisis in our country and to bring people together to help give all babies their 9 months. The March of Dimes is leading a national effort to save babies from premature birth by funding research to find the causes.